I'd Kill For You To Love Me, Too
by MiracleWorker159
Summary: When Marinette shows up to school, Alya isn't sure what to make of her. She won't talk, always shows up late, and falls asleep in class. When the 6 month anniversary of the day serial kill, Chat Noir, struck a deal with the city so that he would never kill again, comes around, things start getting weirder. Who is Marinette really and what is she hiding? Yandere!Chat Noir AU.
1. Just Bloody Tell The Truth

Trigger Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, blood, gore, murder, implied and referenced sex (consensual and non consensual) with BDSM elements, abuse, obsession, pyschopathic behaviors and tendencies, cursing.

Basically... Yandere!Chat Noir AU (He's a serial killer). No Ladybug, and Marinette went to a different school. Enjoy my Halloween story!

~~~

When Marinette first came to school, Alya thought she was just shy. She wore a baggy black hoodie and kept her head down all day, her hood always cloaking her face, making it impossible to tell what color her hair was. Alya had tried to introduce herself once Marinette arrived, but all she had gotten was a timid nod before the black-clad girl hurried away. Alya had chalked it up as first-day jitters, she personally knew being the new girl wasn't fun.

Alya assumed Marinette would open up to everyone later in the day, take off her hood, interact with the class. But she didn't. Marinette sat in the back of the class, quietly doing her work, keeping her head down. When anyone in class would go to talk to her, she would make herself look busy or just nod.

This alone wouldn't have made Alya suspicious, but then things started getting weird. On the first day, Chloe, having noticed the new girl for the first time, decided to try and torment her, as she did with all new students she didn't deem adequate.

"Ms. Bustier?" Chloe asked, waving her hand in the air as she interrupted the teachers lecture.

The red headed teacher sighed, putting down her piece of chalk. "What is it this time, Ms. Bourgeois?"

Chloe turned around, pointing to the back of the room. "Isn't it a rule that we aren't allowed to wear hoods during class?"

The girl at the back of the room froze, her pencil stopping immediately, blue eyes widening. Alya notice her jaw tense under the pressure of the class' eyes.

The teacher blinked before her mouth curled into a frown. She turned to Chloe, apprehension in her voice as she said, "I don't see what this has to do with our lesson, Chloe."

Chloe guffafed, placing her hands on her hips. "Well... it doesn't. But as Class Representative, it is my duty to make sure that everyone follows the rules." She turned back to Marinette, sneering. "Even new students."

Alya could see Marinette shrink under the stare, looking down under Chloe's glare.

Alya knew Chloe would win, this was often a conversation that would hapen if someone broke the dress code. The only person who was the exception was Nino, who wore his hat, no matter what anyone said, until the teachers gave up.

Alya gave a sad smile in Marinette's direction, pitying the shy girl, and prepared herself for her teacher to inevitably give the order for Marinette to remove her hood.

But then, the teacher did the most unexplainable thing.

"Ms. Bourgeois, if you cannot contribute something to my lessons, do not interrupt my teaching."

"But she-"

The teacher silenced her with a glare before turning on her heel and returning to her lesson.

Alya had been baffled after that first day. Ms. Bustier always listened to the dress code. The fact that she didn't reprimand Marinette set off something in Alya's mind.

She decided to ignore it, at first, believing Ms. Bustier or the other teachers would eventually correct Marinette. But they didn't. And then Marinette began showing a tendency to be late to class.

The first time it had happened and Marinette had shown up without a late slip, Ms. Bustier told her that since she was new, she would excuse the fact that she did not have an excused absence. The second time it happened, she said the same thing. And the third, and the fourth, and the fifth. Somewhere along the line, she stopped saying anything. Marinette would show up to class late, Ms. Bustier would clearly see her, and she would not even pause her lecture to tell her not to be late.

Not once did Marinette utter a single excuse for why she was late, not once. In fact she never said anything at all, only nodded, looking down at the floor, hiding in the same baggy black hoodie that she wore every day.

This was when Alya began thinking something was wrong. She approached Marinette several times with the goal of trying to ask her if this was the case. Every time, she was ignored.

She then went to her friends about it during lunch, asking if they had also encountered Marinette's strangeness.

"Yeah, she's a bit weird," Alix said, biting into an apple. "It's a little creepy how she never even talks to anyone. And the teachers don't even ask her to answer questions!" Alix finished the apple, chucking the core into the trash can a few fet away.

"Maybe she's just really shy?" Rose offered. "I bet that in a few weeks she'll be talking to all of us!"

Juleka shook her head. "I don't think so, I've never actually heard he speak. There's shy, but she's on a whole other planet of refusing to interact with society."

"Have your tried talking to her?" Mylene asked Alya. "Maybe she's just waiting for someone to offer to be her friend."

Alya groaned, sinking into her arms, covering her head. "I've already tried that. Every time I do, she just leaves."

Mylene sympathetically patted her head. "Maybe you should ask Ms. Bustier. For all we know, she could be mute!"

Alya jolted up, looking Mylene in the eye. "That's it! Hah! All this time it's not that she's shy, maybe she just can't talk!" Alya pumped her fist in the air.

There was a loud crash and they turned their heads to see Marinette on the floor, her food tray spilling it's contents. Standing abover her, Marc was apologizing profusely, offering out his hand to help her up.

Marinette visibly recoiled, flinching away from his offered hand. She backed up, quickly standing up, shaking her head, eyes wide. She left her tray on the floor, her body trembling.

Marc looked confused. "I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

The cafeteria had gone silent, everyone listening to their conversation, eyes obviously watching the pair.

In a whisper so quiet Alya was almost not able to hear it, Marinette spoke. Alya would later have to ask multiple people who were sitting closer exactly what she said, but they all confirmed what she originally believed was said.

"You can't touch me." Marinette left the room in a flurry, racing out the doors. She didn't return to school that day.

After the _Cafeteria Incident_ , so dubbed by the school, Alya had scrapped the "mute" theory. Still, Marinette continued to refuse talking, the incident seeming to have made her draw back even more if it were possible.

Alya had so many questions swirling around her head. _Why is Marinette so scared of Marc touching her? Did she mean that other people couldn't touch her also? Why did she leave in such a hurry?_

So Alya came up with her second theory, which she presented to her friends during the next lunch period.

"You think Marinette's being abused?" Juleka asked warily.

Alya nodded firmly. "Think about it. She never speaks, she's always wearing that hoodie, and she won't allow anyone to touch her!" She gestured with her arms. "She's probably hiding bruises underneath her hoodie, which is why she wears it all the time."

"Then why would she always wear her hood?" Alix questioned.

"A lot of abuse victims are embarrassed or feel bad about themselves, she's probably using it to hide from everyone."

Rose nodded thoughtfully. "Then what do we do?"

"Maybe we could give her the numbers of a few lawyers? See if she can get moved into a better home." Mylene said. "But first, we should probably tell Ms. Bustier our concerns."

Alya hummed in agreement, formulating a plan.

When they went to Ms. Bustier, however, things did not go as planned.

"Girls..." She said as gently as she could. "Are you sure this is the truth? Have any of you asked Marinette if this is the case?"

"We've tried, Ma'am." Alya said bitterly. "She won't speak to us."

"I've heard her say five words total, Ms. Bustier. And they weren't even to me." Alix responded.

Ms. Bustier nodded slowly. "I understand your concerns, girls, and I'm proud you've come to me to discuss this."

"We would never let one of our classmates suffer." Rose said firmly.

"Yeah," Mylene agreed. "And if there's anything we can do to help one of them out, we do it."

"Accept if it's against the law." Juleka responded.

Everyone was quiet for a moment. Juleka just shrugged.

Ms. Bustier blinked, her hands claclasping her coffee mug. "As I was saying, thank you for coming to me with this information..." Alya felt pride burning in her chest, grateful her teacher appreciated and took in their claims. "But I'm afraid your wrong."

"I'm sorry, what?"

Ms. Bustier shook her head. "Your concerns are appreciated but your conclusion isn't the truth." Their teacher met each of their eyes. "Marinette has talked to me, she has a tough life outside of school, something I trust will not be dug into any further unless consent is given." She gave Alya a look at that. "I won't disclose what isn't mine to tell. If Marinette feels the need to discuss her life with any of you she will. But since that is not the case, we would both appreciate that you leave her to herself. How she acts in school is the product of something only she truly understands. Do not take offense to whether or not she behaves a certain way around you. It's simply her coping method for something she finds difficult."

Alya swallowed, taking in the information. "Is she okay, Ms. Bustier?"

Ms. Bustier looked our the window, her gaze looking beyond the glass, maybe beyond something they could see. "Thank you for sharing this with me, but I think it's time you leave."

"But-"

The teacher silenced her with a look.

"Yes, Ma'am," Alya sighed, looking at her hands.

As the group of girls left the classroom, Alya couldn't help but fee like she was missing something.

As they walked down the hall Alya blurted out, "You don't think Ms. Bustier was lying, do you?"

Rose paused her walking. "Why would you say that?"

"I just..." Alya began. "Its feel like she's hiding something from us, you know?"

"Why would she do that?" Mylene asked. "And even if she was, I really don't think it's our right to demand an answer."

Alya leaned against the lockers, arms crossed over her chest. "I agree with you on that, but I still believe that Marinette is being hurt. It could be by parents, it could be by her boyfriend, or something, but I still think it's happening. I don't know about you, but I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened and I had an inkling but didn't do anything about it."

For a moment, everyone was silent, considering.

"So what now?" Alix asked Alya, breaking the silence. "We were literally told not to get involved. So how are we gonna do this; what job are you gonna give me?"

Alya let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Alix. This means a lot to me."

"Well... I'm in too!" Rose exlaimed throwing her hand forward. "Are we all in this or what?"

Alya and Alix each placed a hand over hers.

Mylene and Juleka followed.

"So we're in ageement, then." Alya said. "We help Marinette no matter what the teachers say."

All heads nod.

"Good. I'll try and brainstorm a plan and tell you girls later. Text me if any of you come up with good ideas."

Rose saluted. "We are at your service, Alya."

Just then the bell rang, signaling lunch was over. The group of friends walked to class together, Alya finally feeling confident that she might finally have figured out the real truth about the way Marinette acted.

As she stepped into Ms. Mendeleiev's physics classroom. She waved to Nino as she passed, sitting down in the seat behind him. Lonely, it was lonely to sit by yourself, Alya thought. She couldn't help but glance to the back table, finding Marinette in her usual spot.

Marinette sat slouched, arms acting as a pillow for her head as she rested against her desk. It was almost like she was... _Sleeping!_ Alya realized, a wave of panic rushing through her. Class had only just started, how tired did she have to be to fall asleep within two minutes of the bell ringing? But that wasn't the only part that scared her. The major problem was that Ms. Mendeleiev was the most notorious teacher in the school for administering harsh punishments to those who fell asleep in her class.

Alya couldn't exactly walk up to her and wake her up, it would likely only draw attention to the fact that she had fallen asleep. So all Alya could do was sit there and hope their teacher didn't notice the sleeping student at the back of the class.

"Ms. Mendeleiev? Someone's fallen asleep!" Alya wanted to strangle Lila Rossi more than she'd ever wanted to before. Lila was a liar, that was a fact that had been engrained into the class' brains for years. Unfortunately, since no one believed her lies anymore, she had settled for showing her true colors, making people's lives miserable. Her favorite technique: hurtful truths.

The purple haired teacher's gaze snapped from the formula she was writing and quickly scanned the room, vision settling on the form of poor, sleeping, Marinette. Slowly, the teacher walked forward, her footsteps the only sound in the room.

But, when she reached her desk, the teacher went past Marinette, walking to the back of the classroom. She stopped at the shelves before pulling off an object.

Then, she went back to Marinette and tapped on her shoulder.

The girls stirred, letting out a questioning noise, blinking up at the teacher. She startled back a bit, but stopped when she saw what her teacher was holding.

"Marinette, if you're going to sleep in my class, at least use this." She pressed the pillow into Marinette's hands and walked to the front of the room.

Marinette gaped at the teacher and Alya finally noticed the black bags beneath the girl's eyes. _Holy crap..._ The class started chatting all at once, noises of protest and jealously rising up.

The teacher clapped her hands, returning the class's attention to her, the conversations quieted. "All right, class. As I was saying. When a..."

Alya stopped listening. If that wasn't an indicator that Marinette was hiding something and the teacher's were in on it, she didn't know what was. Finally, Alya let herself focus on the lesson.

Throughout the rest of class, soft snoring could be heard from the back of the room.

~~~

When Alya got home that day, she immediately started brainstorming. Several ideas were scraped instantly, others seemed to be a little more promosing. After about an hour, she decided to see if her friends had come up with anything.

 **Alya:** Any ideas yet?

 **Rose:** I thought maybe we could throw a party and invite her

 **Alix:** prbly wouldnt wrk

 **Juleka:** We could see if she wnts to join a cub

club

 **Mylene:** We could try to invite her to sit with us at lunch. She sits alone right?

 **Alya:** Thats 1 of my top ideas. Main thing is we start off slow ddont want to ovrload her, k?

 **Alix:** Shld I c if she wants to be on my next dodgbal tem?

 **Alya:** 1, learn to spell. 2, that could work

 **Rose:** When do we play next

 **Mylene:** Ivan thought Mr. D'Argencourt said next class, could be wrng tho

 **Juleka:** Worth a shot, maybe it'll cause her to talk?

No?

 **Rose:** I think there's a chance :)

With that, Alya set down her phone and sighed. _Do I take a direct approach? Maybe corner her somewhere. But then, there's always the chance that I scare her off..._ Alya drummed her fingers on her desk when an idea came to mind.

She unlocked her phone and dialed a number.

" _What's_ _up,_ _Dudette?_ " Nino's voice said over the phone.

"Here's the thing, Nino..."

 **Hello everyone! Welcome to my Hallowen special. *Insert spooky music* Originally, my plan was going to be to release a 10,000-ish word oneshot, but I'm having some trouble with lag, so It's probably going to be a 3-4 parter with each being 3,000-5,000 words long.The second part will be out by at Halloween at the latest.**

 **Fun fact, I've actually been holding on to this story for a while but am only now releasing it as a special for the holidays. For fans who are invested in my main series 'Crime Filled Nights, Moonlit Skies', a chapter is in the works and will be up as soon as it is completed. On the same day, I also hope to post chapter 3 of 'Raven Haired Girls, A Black Cat Guise', so a lot is coming your way.**

 **In case you haven't noticed, I'm trash for the Marichat villain trope. This fic just happens to have Chat as bit more psychotic. Btw, they're in Senior year in this AU. Hope you're at least a bit intrigued, Miracle out!**


	2. I'm Dying To Find Out Your Secrets

Five weeks. Five _damn_ weeks and nothing had worked. Nothing was letting Alya get any closer to Marinette, to finding out a way to help her. Because here _was_ something wrong, if five weeks had taught her something it was that something was most definitely wrong with Marinette.

So far, Alya had tried at least a dozen plans. Get the class to give her a welcome gift? Said gift was quietly, but in no way discreetly tossed in the trash. Invite her on a dodgeball team? Marinette sat on the bleachers within the first minute of class, not even giving Mr. D'Argencourt an excuse. Alya's suspicion rose when the P.E teacher didn't ask for one, either.

Alya teamed up with not only her girl friends, but the class. Everyone but Chloe, Sabrina, and Lila pitched in to help. They all wanted to make Marinette feel included, or at least find out what was going wrong so that they could help her. Max came up with the idea to leave her a note on her locker, only to find out she never used it, which Alya added to Marinette's growing case file. Ivan and Mylene brought cupcakes for Ivan's eighteenth birthday to share new with the class, the girl in the back of the room had shoved it aside.

Alya was starting to get worried. What if nothing was actually wrong and Marinette thought they were harassing her? _No_ , Alya often had to assure herself. _All the evidence points to something being wrong, there's just something we're missing._

"Okay!" Alya said, pulling out her very real and literal case file. She had asked the class to meet in the library to discuss further plans on how to get Marinette to either open up or tell someone what she was going through. "Let's review the evidence."

She opened the folder, the papers within neatly typed and hole punched. "She never speaks, never works in groups when it's mandatory, has a baggy sweater, never takes off her hood, she had dark circles under her eyes, she falls asleep in class, she doesn't participate in P.E, she never allows people to touch her, she won't eat food when it's offered as a gift, she hasn't eaten lunch in the Cafeteria since the _Cafeteria Incident_ , she- _Yes_ , Max?"

The boy had raised his hand, Alya eyeing him over the rim of her glasses, raising an eyebrow. "You forgot to mention that none of the teachers say anything about this, either."

Alya rolled her eyes. "I was getting to that, Max." She ran a finger down the evidence list. "Ahh, right here. Number sixteen, 'Teachers do not acknowledge lack of response, tardies, falling asleep, or refusal to participate.' Since we seem to be getting nowhere anytime soon, does anyone have any more information?"

Kim waved a hand in the air and Alya nodded. "To be sure, we've covered the fact that she's never counted tardy, right?"

Alix punched him in the shoulder. "Haven't you been paying _any_ attention, meat head?"

Kim shoved her, crossing his arms over his chest. "No, that's not what I meant. My question was whether or not we know for a fact if the teachers are actually ignoring all of this. I mean, yeah, they don't say anything, but is it affecting her grades or not?"

Alya blinked before skimming her list. "That's actually a good point, Kim. It doesn't look like we know for sure. Max? You wouldn't be able to hack the school computers to find out her grades, would you?"

"Babe, isn't that taking things a little too far?" Nino asked with a frown.

"I'm with Nino on this one," Mylene agreed. "There's such a thing as trying to help, but there's also invading someone's privacy."

Alya nodded in consideration. "I'll think about it and we can discuss it as a group later." She made a note with the pencil on the 'Plans' page of the folder before shutting it and setting it down.

This seemed to passify them, at least temporarily. Alya checked the time, looking up at the clock on the wall. they had all decided to meet before school so it wouldn't look suspicious that they were all heading to the library during lunch. _8:37_

"Yikes," Nathaneal hissed, reading the time as well. "We should get going, school starts if eight minutes." He started collecting his drawings, which he had been doodeling while the class had met.

"Me and Juleka are going to stay here, I have to check out a book before class." Rose smiled before dragging her girlfriend further into the bookshelves. Alya smirked, knowing there was no such book.

Her friends began gathering their things and filing out of the library. Nino walked up to Alya, placing an arm around her waist as she started shoving the papers in her bag. As she leaned over, she huffed, blowing her hair from her face.

"You alright, Alya? You seem tense." She stiffened, taking a step away.

"Don't worry, Nino, I'm fine." Alya turned on her heel and exited the library, heading down the steps and toward the locker room.

Nino rushed after her, putting himself at her side as the walked.

"Woah, I haven't seen you this wound up in years, what's getting to you?" Alya looked away, refusing to meet his gaze. "This isn't still about Marinette, is it?"

Alya ran a hand through her hair. "I just don't get it. Why haven't I cracked this yet? I'm supposed to be a journalist, Nino, why is nothing we do working?" She flung her arms out in frustration.

"Is that why you're doing this?" Nino asked quietly, stopping. "For _journalism_?"

"What?" Her eyes widened. "Nino, no! Never! The only reason I'm doing this is because I want to help, learning the information about her-"

"Asking and digging into personal information are two completely different things, Alya. If you wanted to help, just ask her how you can." Nino put a hand on her shoulder.

"But-"

"True journalists respect privacy, Alya. I know you've already asked her, which is why I think you should stop trying to think of the 'why' aspect and start figuring out the 'how can I help'. If she says to leave her alone, than do it. Marinette's a person, too, Alya. One that is very private. Should you really be searching for personal information if the subject doesn't want it found?"

Alya's jaw slackened and she groaned, hiding her face in her palms. "I've been awful, haven't I?" She peaked out from behind her fingers and groaned.

Nino hummed in response.

"But... I've come so far, spent so much time on this-" Nino gave her a look that she read as ' _really?_ '' Alya sighed. "I know, I know. You think I should trash it..."

Her boyfriend nodded, straightening his cap.

Alya groaned again. "Fine... But what should I do next? I mean, I still want to help Marinette. I'm not giving up on that."

Nino chuckled. "I'd hope not. And, if it were me, I'd explain the fact that I'd been basically stalking her ever since she got here and apologies for that." He started walking again, opening the doors to the locker room, holding one open for Alya.

She glanced at him out no of the side of her eye, noticing the sparkle of triumph show in his own brown orbs.

She gasped for a second before pointing an accusing finger at him. "You've been planning this for a long time, haven't you! You never approved of my-" She paused, noting the many students around. " _research project_. "

Nino shook his head, whistling as he walked up to his locker and began to enter the combo. "Absolutely not, but I wanted to be a supportive boyfriend, in case you changed your mind. When you didn't, well, I couldn't let you go too far, could I?"

Alya wrapped her arms around him from behind, resting her head against his back, hands clasped at his chest.

He stiffened for a moment before placing her hands on his heart, one of his overtop them.

"You're the best, Nino."

Though she couldn't see it, she could _feel_ him smiling. She was about to say as much when a locker across the hall slammed loudly.

The couple jumped, untangling themselves to see what the commotion was about. Chloe Bourgeois had her hand menacingly splayed across her locker, glaring daggers at the hooded figure sitting on the bench in the middle of the section of lockers.

Marinette was digging through her grey backpack which rested at her side, ignoring the blonde bi- _witch_ , Alya corrected herself.

" _So_ ," Chloe started. "Who gives you the right to sit so close to me, _Marinette Dupain-Cheng_ ?"

Marinette didn't even flinch as Chloe took a step towards her, the hooded girl still searching through the small outer pocket of her backpack.

"Did you hear me? I asked you a question!" The Mayor's daughter stomped her foot.

Again there was no response.

"I _said_ , did you hear me?" With that, Chloe shoved he girl off the bench, her backpack emptying some of its inards across the floor.

Alya gasped and took a step forward, ready to give Chloe a stern talking to, but Chloe also gasped as she saw one of the items that had been flung out of Marinette's bag.

The girl was scrambling to shove her things back into her bag when Chloe stooped down and picked up a small package off the floor.

"Are these _birth control_ pills?" Chloe sneered in question.

Marinette went still as death, but said nothing, she only slowly rose to her feet, swinging a strap of her backpack over her shoulder. And then she held out a single pale hand, palm up.

In a small withered voice, she said, "Please return my personal items."

Chloe snarled, not even recognizing the girl had spoken. "These _are_ birth control pills! There's no way you have a boyfriend..." She paused her eyes widened, eyebrows narrowing. "Are you a prostitute?"

Marinette turned her head so fast her hood fell off her head. Silky, smooth, raven hair spilled out behind her, reaching just above her shoulders. And then she snarled, _snarled_ , "Why? Do you have a problem with people who do what they have to do to survive?"

Chloe took a step back in a defensive position. "You are, aren't you! I bet you're selling yourself on the streets every night! That's why you come to school late, that's why you fall asleep in class! I don't know how you managed to convince the teachers, you _whore_ -"

A slap resounded through the halls. Alya stood in shock as she took in Marinette's outstretched hand and Chloe's red cheek.

Chloe gaped, "How _dare_ you! Do you know who I am, you little-"

Marinette's glare was pure ice and rage as she said very carefully, "Chloe Bourgeois, daughter of the current mayor of Paris, born in the year 2000, on January tenth. You are seventeen."

"How do you-"

The girl with eyes of ice did not let Chloe speak, instead raising her volume. "Your favorite subject is theatre but you never let anyone else know except for Sabrina, who you have been friends with since Kindergarten. She is your _one_ and _only_ friend because you're a stuck-up spoiled _bitch_ that gets _everything_ handed to you on a silver platter!" Marinette was yelling, everyone staring at the debacle as if in a trance. "Oh, wait. You _don't_ have everything, do you? Because your a _cunt_ with 'mommy issues' that cries her eyes out every night because _your mother doesn't love you!"_ Chloe reacted as if she'd been kicked in the stomach, physically recoiling from Marinette. "So you tell me, _Chloe_ _Bourgeois,_ do I know who you are?"

Everything was quiet, the only noise, Marinette's labored breathing. She spoke one last time in a low but clear voice."I am not a prostitute and it is _not_ your business what I do or don't carry." To prove her point, she grapped the package of pills, shoving them into her hoodie pocket. "You, nor anyone else in the world, understands the hell I've been through and back." She surveyed the room, meeting everyone's eyes, including Alya's. She raised her volume so that everyone could hear. "I don't care. I don't care about you or you problems, I don't care. Don't talk to me, don't dig around in my private life, don't give me things. If you do..." She trailed off, looking out the window briefly. "You are going to regret it."

Marinette walked out of the locker room and every pair of eyes trailed her until she shut the door behind her.

All of a sudden, Alya felt sick to her stomach. She had already done most of what Marinette had said not to do. And Marinette had known. When she had met Alya's gaze, Alya knew she had known what Alya was doing the whole time. Her body trembled, her knees going shaky. Bile rose in the back of her throat and Alya fought back another wave of nausea.

Steadying hands found their way to her shoulders, pulling her against the body attached to them. Alya leaned into Nino as he held her, rubbing soothing circles into her hand.

She could vaguely comprehend him telling her to breathe, which she did, letting clean oxygen stream into her lungs. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale...

The bell echoed throughout the hallway, signaling class had started, the last few students finding their ways out of the halls and into their classrooms. But Nino and Alya stayed like that, holding each other.

After what seemed like an eternity, Alya released her grip on Nino's hand, one she hadn't realized she'd been doing. "I'm okay now, I'm okay."

Nino took a step back, Alya walking out of his arms. She reached for the bag at her side, pulling out the folder within. Walking over to the trash can, Alya ripped the folder in half, tossing the remnants into the bin, watching the papers flutter to the bottom. Weeks of research for nothing but her own sense of a right to information that she didn't need to know.

And suddenly, she understood why Ms. Bustier had told her not to get involved. Her teacher had predicted this would happen, had known this is where her path would lead, and had warned her against it. But, Alya, so focused on the mystery, had blown right past all the warnings and privacy and had dove head first into something she didn't and shouldn't understand.

Tears pooling at the corner of her eyes, Alya said, "Let's go to class..."

~~~

Unsurprisingly, Alya and Nino were both given tardies when they reached class. Alya quickly scanned the back of the room, instantly spotting the empty desk. She inwardly cursed as she climbed the steps to her table.

As she passed the first row, she noticed Chloe's still shell-shocked and distant expression. She couldn't help but wonder if Marinette hit the nail on the head with her accusations. Even more confusing, Marinette was getting even more confusing. How _had_ she learned all, those things about Chloe if she never talked to anyone? What was-

 _No_! Alya berated herself. _No more snooping._ She took in a deep breath, sitting down in her seat, bringing her attention to Ms. Bustier.

Five minutes later, in true Marinette style, she walked into class. A few of her classmates gasped and began whispering as they took in the hood that was still down, the puffy red eyes, the tear-stained cheeks. She climbed the steps up to her desk one at a time. Alya's gaze followed her up the stairs.

She turned back to the front when blue bell eyes met hers for the briefest of moments.

 _Who are you, Marinette? Who are you?_ Alya looked over her shoulder to see Marinette already half asleep against her desk, mouth slighty open.

 _And why do I keep getting the feeling that you need my help?_

 _"Could Ms. Chloe Bourgeois Please report to the Principal's office, thank you!"_ The intercom sounded.

Chloe, as if in a daze, got up out of her seat and left the room. Alya watched her with narrow eyes, studying her strange behavior. Something must have been seriously wrong for Chloe to not make a scene.

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out~!" Trilled Lila from her seat next to Nathaneal, waving her fingers. Chloe grit her teeth, shutting the door behind her probably harder than she meant to. Understandable, since Lila was using one of Chloe's own signature lines.

An uneasy quiet followed, Alya watching Ms. Bustier's eyes trail after Chloe, as if forgetting she had a class to teach. She blinked a few times, her eyes refocusing on the class.

"Right, well, as I was saying, students... Self sacrifice is shown thoughout many stories a books, movies, and songs. Can anyone tell me the importance of a character sacrificing themselves?"

Several hands shot in the air, including Alya's.

"Yes, Rose?"

"When a character or person sacrifices themselves it means they give themselves or their lives up in order to benefit the greater good."

The teacher nodded. "You are correct, Rose, but I asked for the definition. Alix?"

"When someone gives up everything they have for a cause or a person, it shows that they value the people or cause they are fighting for. Self sacrifice is important in stories, and even in real life, because it shows dedication and a refusal to lose or back down."

Ms. Bustier smiled. "Very well said, Alix. Knowing that, raise your hand if you would ever be willing to sacrifice yourself for your friends and family?"

Several hands flew up.

Ms. Bustier put her hands on her hips. "And how many people would sacrifice yourself for your neighbors?"

Multiple hands reluctantly found their way down.

"Would anybody give up their lives for someone they didn't know?"

Dead silence, not a single hand raised.

The redheaded teacher nodded, seeming to have expected this. "I've asked you this because I want you to understand the sacrafices people make. You see, police officers do this all the time. So do firemen. In fact, self sacrifice doesn't even have to be giving up your life." She walked to the board and began writing. "You can sacrifice your time," she wrote this down. "energy, food. You can give up some of the space in your home to offer it to someone who doesn't have one. Every sacrifice you make that makes your own life strain, even just a little bit, is a self sacrifice. And that can be as big as giving up your life, and as small as giving a classmate your only pencil."

Ms. Bustier turned around, placing down her chalk, clapping the dust off her hands. "Self sacrifice stems from the want or hope to help others. It comes from generosity."

Alya leaned into the palm of her hand, enthralled. The spell, however, was broken when Lila called out, "I don't believe that at all, Ms. Bustier." Alya ground her teeth together, because _of course_ Lila would have a different opinion.

The teacher looked at her curiously. "If you are willing to share, Ms. Rossi, I'm eager to hear your reasoning behind this."

Lila straightened, running a hand over her hair. "Well, I think self sacrifice comes from a place of selfishness." Think about it, if they sacrifice themselves and things go wrong, what will their friends think? What would their family think? They'd grieve and the person who sacrificed themselves wouldn't have thought about anything else but their own lust for fame and attention." She tossed a strand of hair over her shoulder like she'd just given a speech. "But that's obviously just my opinion, of course."

"If that's what you believe, than you're even dumber than I thought." Heads whipped to the back of the room to see Marinette standing, hands on her desk, leaning forward to where Lila sat in front of her. The brunette's eyes widened, "Excuse me-"

"No, _excuse me_ , Miss High and Mighty." Marinette's lips curled downward, glaring at the girl in front of her. "Because if that's really your opinion, you know absolutely _nothing_ about what it is to give up everything."

Lila scoffed, turning away from Marinette and facing the front. "And _you_ do?"

"Yes."

Lila slowly turned back to Marinette. Alya flinched when she looked into her ices. She was dead serious.

"You're lying." Lila insisted.

Marinette shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. You'll never know because it's not your business. But you do get to know this." She leaned forward once again, staring Lila right in the eyes. "Brown haired bimbos who leave notes telling other people to kill themselves don't get to assume they know what sacrifice is."

Alya's jaw dropped and voices rose in surprise and anger. She knew Lila was bad, but she didn't think the liar would ever stoop so low.

"As if, loser! I'd never do that. You're new so you don't have a clue what I'm talking about!" Lila's word choice only further cemented that she _had_ , in fact, done exactly what she was pleading not guilty to.

"Lila!" The voices stopped and the class turned to Ms. Bustier, her face engulfed with rage. Alya could have sworn Lila paled a bit. Alya didn't blame her, she had never seen Ms. Bustier so angry. _Ever._ "Is it true-" She stomped up the steps, staring down at her.

"No, Ms. Bustier, of course it's not. I-"

" _Is it true?"_

Lila visibly swallowed, looking into her lap. Alya could barely hear the girl whisper, "...yes ma'am."

"Two weeks after school detention. And you will march yourself to the Principal's office and explain this to him the _second_ Chloe gets back."

Lila's eyes widened. "I swear I can explain-"

"Furthermore, you will write a two page typed letter to Marinette apologizing about your behavior and swearing to never do it again."

The classroom door swung open, a snivveling Chloe walked in and sat at her seat, burying her face in her arms.

Looking back to Ms. Bustier, Alya saw her point to the door. "Go to the Principal's office."

"No! I can't, Ms. Bustier-"

" _Get out of my classroom!"_

Lila looked like she might cry, but bundled her things in her arms and trudged down the stairs, heading for the door.

The teacher turned once more, looking down at Marinette.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"It didn't feel important, Ms. Bustier." Marinette looked away, bangs falling in her face.

Alya suddenly felt like none of them should be listening to this, that the teacher and student had temporarily forgotten where they were and who was there. Still, Alya couldn't stop herself from hanging on to every word.

"Of course it's important, Marinette." She placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Next time, not that I'm hoping there will be, tell me if someone's hurting you."

Marinette huffed, arms crossed over her chest. She blew a stray hair out of her face with annoyance. "You know I can't do that."

"I know, sweetheart, but I'd listen if you just told me. I'll always be hear if you need to let it all out."

Marinette didn't say anything, fidgeting with her sleeve.

"Tell you what," the teacher said. "Why don't I take you to the library. You can stay there the rest of the period, if you like. Unless you're... _services_ are required at home. In fact, I'll let your teachers know that you'll be spending your day in the library today. And I don't mean to push, but is your _gaurdian_ letting up on the club situation yet?"

Marinette shook her head. "He doesn't want me to be away any longer than what is humanly possible... I don't think he'll ever let me stay after school, not without showing up here himself just to chaperone me."

The teacher frowned. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, I chose this; I chose him."

"I'm still sorry you have to deal with all this baggage. You shouldn't have to face this alone, not with everything you've done for us."

Marinette offered a sad smile. "It doesn't work that way. And besides, I'm not alone. He's with me."

"You know that's not what I meant."

Marinette wiped away a tear with the back of her sleeve. "I know. I'm going to go to the library, thank you Ms. Bustier."

Marinette stood, walking past all the staring eyes, not even acknowledging them. Ms. Bustier followed her down the steps, opening the classroom door, Marinette stepping into the hall. "I'll take you, dear." The teacher paused, seeming to recognize that she'd been neglecting the rest of the class. "Oh. Alya? You're in charge until I get back."

With that, she shut the door behind her.

"What the hell was that?" Alix asked loudly.

Alya just shook her head. "I think we're way in over our heads."

 **Hello and thank you to all of you who followed and favorited this story! Don't worry, it's not over yet. The next part will be posted on either November 2nd or 3rd. To all four of you who reviewed, thank you for your support, too. Honestly, nothing motivates me more than hearing exactly what you have to say about my stories.**

 **So tell me what you think happened to Marinette! Any theories? Are you getting the bigger picture? Next time, it shall be revealed what happened. *ominous scary music* Anyway, thank you all again and take care! Miracle out!**


	3. Gorey Pasts Won't Deter Me

Extreme Trigger Warning Do NOT Read If You Are Sensitive To The Material:

Mentions of murder, killing in schools, and a lot of young deaths. Implied rape and psychological torture and PTSD. Most likely Stockholm Syndrome.

I want to say this extremely seriously. If this offends somebody out there, I am _truly_ sorry. I kno this is an extremely sore subject for a _lot_ of people and my heart goes out to you. Again, DO NOT read this if you are sensitive about these topics. I will try to handle them to the best of my ability, but if I make a mistake and accidentally offend somebody, you have no idea how sorry I am. Again, you have been thoroughly warned.

~~~

Alya didn't know how, but by the time lunch rolled around, the rest of the student body knew everything. And she meant _everything_. They knew about Chloe, they knew how Marinette had told her off, and they knew about Lila. The only thing they didn't seem to know about is the conversation between Marinette and Ms. Bustier.

Alya also knew for a fact that no one in their class had said anything, not even Chloe. And Lila had no reason to gossip about herself. But however the school knew, it didn't matter. What _did_ matter is that Marinette was the only thing anyone was talking about. Or, anything related to the subject of Marinette.

Some students had even attempted going to the library to spy on her or talk. So much so that Marinette had been given permission to spend the rest of the day in the teacher's lounge so she wouldn't be bothered or harassed. Not that Alya saw this, just couldn't help but overhear because it was the only thing on people's lips.

The cafeteria was way more crowded thn usual due to the influx of students who had decided to remain at school for their lunch period to gossip more.

Alya gripped her lunch tray, her stomach churning as she took in the masses. The tables were overflowing with students, sometimes two to a seat. Alya made her way through the hoard of students to her normal lunch table with her friends, only to find not only them, but the rest of the class there, squashed together to fit everybody.

Alya cringed as she looked around at the gossiping cafeteria, knowing this was the opposite of what Marinette wanted. Alya took a seat, sitting on Nino's lap since it was the only spot. She set her tray in front of his, knowing she wasn't going to end up needing it. Her boyfriend's arms wrapped around her and she relaxed, exhaling a sigh.

"This is just messed up..." She groaned to Nino, gesturing to the amount of students. "Why can't people learn to mind their own damn business."

Nino poked her in the sighed, her cheeks heating up in realization. "Was I really like that...?" She asked weakly.

"No, you were a little better. You kept it discreet. These people are just shameless." She nodded in agreement.

"She must feel awful. All she wanted was to be ignored, not the center of attention!" Alya picked up her plastic fork and began to impale a strawberry with it, bringing it down sharply on the fruit. "Ugh, this is all just stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid." Every time she said the word, she brought her fork down on the strawberry.

"Careful," Nino said chuckling. "You're about to commit strawberry murder." He stopped almost immediately and Alya felt him stiffen beneathe her. She moved a bit so she could look him in the eyes.

"Still can't say it...?" She ask tentatively.

Nino swallowed, sharply shaking his head. He closed his eyes , squeezing his eyelids shut with ferocity, as if he could force out the memory.

Alya placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and said gently, looking up at him, "Geoffrey's okay, Nino. He survived."

Nino took in a shuddering breath. "I know, boy do I know. But what if, you know? He was one of the fifteen, _fifteen,_ Alya, that survived. My little brother went to school that day and walked- no, he was _carried_ out that day as one of fifteen." A tear rolled down his cheek and Alya wiped it away, her own eyes threatening to leak. "No ninth grader should have to deal with their _entire_ effing high school being _murdered_. No, _nobody_ should ever have to deal with that." His voice was becoming ragged.

Alya didn't know how to respond to that, instead she turned more so she was straddling him and wrapped her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder. He shuddered tightening his grip on her.

"He's okay, Nino... He's okay..." She continued to whisper this into his ear. If their friends noticed, they didn't comment, probably trying to give them space.

"I don't know what they did to make Chat Noir back off," Nino said, fists curling against her. "but I hope he got exactly what he deserved; I hope they made him pay."

Alya was quiet for a moment before she said, "It's been almost six months since they said he was gone... You don't think he might come back, do you?"

Nino shook his head, "I don't know, Alya, I really don't know." Alya looked up at him and cupped his cheek.

"Are you going to be okay?" She gave him a peck on the lips, her eyebrows furrowing together with worry.

He didn't respond for a moment but slowly nodded.

Alya breathed a sigh of relief. "Did you...?" She hesitated for amoment, trying to decide if she should ask or not. "Did you ever get to meet the other fourteen?"

"I met some of them... None-" He choked for a second. "None of Geoffrey's friends... They didn't..." _Survive._ "Why did he do it? That's the part I never understood. Why?"

"He's Chat Noir, it's in his job description."

"Yeah, but... Over a thousand people? Teachers, _teenagers_! He never went that big before." Nino wheezed.

"I wish I knew, Nino. I wish I knew..."

~~~

When she had heard about the Rosalinda Massacre, she honestly hadn't believed it. Over a thousand high schoolers killed in one afternoon but one man without a gun, teenagers butchered. When Alya had finally understood that it was true, she'd vomited her guts up. And Nino... Nino had been histerical. He was almost admitted to the hospital due to shock. Many of the parents and siblings of the victims had.

When the news of the massacre had gotten out, every school in Paris had closed, people were let out of work. For an entire week, their city, country, had mourned. People flooded through the streets dressed in black to mourn the lives lost. There had been a massive televised funeral at the school. The Mayor had been cringe as he gave his speech. No one but the police was allowed in the school, the gore and blood so massive some police officers had to be rushed to the hospital because they'd become too sick just from the sight. News Crews had been banned from even taking pictures, forced to report from the outside of the school.

There was a long debate that followed about what to do with the building. It was unanimously agreed upon that it should never be used again, for the respect of the students, and the blood that had beens spilled in every room and every hall. They had eventually settled on burning it. The families and friends of the students and teachers had been given the option of leaving a gift in the building in offering of those who had died.

Truckfulls of gifts had been delivered to the school and placed inside. That night, people had watched from their homes as the building burnt to the ground, supervised by firemen so that it wouldn't spread. After the massacre, Paris hadn't quite been the same. there were daily riots in the street demanding the police work harder to catch Chat Noir. And though they quadrupled their efforts, it wasn't enough. Until one day, everything stopped.

It had seemed like a normal day when the Mayor had announced that Chat Noir would no longer be terrorizing their streets and homes, no more lives would be lost. All of Paris had sighed in relief and wept for joy. The Mayor said that they had struck a deal with Chat Noir, one he said he was not ready to disclose but would when the time was right. Paris had rejoiced for weeks on end, celebrating the end of an era of death.

But Alya had not celebrated. She had worried, worried about what could they have offered up to Chat Noir that would make them refuse to tell the city how they'd done it.

~~~

Marinette did not arrive at school the next day. Or the next day, or the next. In fact, she took the week off. As the week passed, the rumors and gossip surrounding Marinette had wound down quite a bit, though the essence of it was still there.

When Marinette had finally returned back to school after the weekened, her hood was once again cloaking and obscuring her. Alya had smiled at her as she walked up the steps to her seat and was not-surprisingly ignored.

When Ms. Bustier had seen her back in class, she let out a sigh of relief before beginning her lessons. In fact, she'd been in the middle of it when the intercom had made an announcement.

 _"All classes please report to the main gym, the Mayor is making a mandatory announcement. Thank you."_

Ms. Bustier had looked confused but nodded slightly, most likely to herself, and clapped her hands together. "You heard them, students. Form a line."

She led the class down the steps and to the gym, multiple other classes doing the same. The gym was packed, the student body sitting on the pavement.

A projector screen had been tied to the raling of the upstairs hallway and displayed a news channel that was focused on the Mayor's podium.

"Did you know about this, Chloe?" She heard Sabrina ask.

"He never tells me anything about his job," Was Chloe's only reply.

Just then, Principal Damocles stood underneath the projector screen and began to speak. "I'm sure you're all wondering exactly what we're doing here today. The school has just been alerted that the Mayor is to make an important announcement and wants all of the city's high schools to hear it." Murmurs erupted from the crowd but were quieted by their peers. "I, as well as the staff, are unaware of what this is about, so we will be learning this information at the sme time as you. Please be respectful to the Mayor and to your fellow students by remaining silent."

With that, he unmuted the feed and the live footage began to play.

 _"I'm sorry this is on such short notice, but I think it is time we finally revealed what happened six months ago, to the day..."_ The Mayor started. Alya blanched, had it really been that long?

" _The Chat Noir Agreement, as it is titled, is a contract that both he and I signed. You are aware of what my side of the agreement was... but we have withheld from you what we gave to him. Before continuing further, it's important to address that, ever since the beginning, we have been able to track exactly which murders Chat Noir commited because of his calling card. At the scene of every crime of his, our officers found a note. The note always had three words on it, no more, no less. They detailed what he wanted, what he would exchange for the murders to stop._

 _"You see, at the time, we avoided it. His price was too high, one that we could never pay because it was against moral code. But overtime, things began to worsen, our alread thread-bare situation began to crumble away even more than before. And after the events of the Rosalinda Massacre, we knew we couldn't wait any longer. So we offered him exactly what he wanted._

 _"However, what he wanted was indefinite legal custody to a single citizen of Paris. Our original plan was to go to this person and beg them to agree. Though, if they told us no, we would have refused Chat Noir's bargain. But our plan was interrupted when this citizen came to us. This person came to us, before we could even explain the deal, and offered themselves up._

 _"I will admit that I am horrified by my actions, by the fact that I needed to agree to this horrible exchange in order to construct peace. I will say I will never stop feeling guilty for my actions, but I can not say that I regret my decision. The agreement has held true and Paris has not seen a death at the claws of_ _Chat Noir, since. I will always be thankful to this individual for providing for us all the right to live without fear in our home, once again. So don't thank me for your safety and freedom, for the one you should be thanking, is Marinette Dupain-Cheng."_

~~~

As the screen was muted, no one made a sound. But the quiet was interupted by the sound of running followed by heaving. Every head in the room turned to where Marinette was. Every person saw as she _heaved_ into the trashcan, the sound of her doing so echoed off of the walls. Her hands gripped the lip of the can tightly ans she _wretched._ She was trembling all over, her shoulders shuddering from either the effort of throwing up or the sobs that now emminated from her direction.

Teachers snapped out of their trances and began quickly ordering the students back into their classrooms, herding the teenagers. All except Ms. Bustier who looked torn between leaving and walking over and giving Marinette a hug.

As the rest of the students left, Alya's class remained put. As the rest of the school left, they began whispering something in Marinette's direction. "Thank you..." Every student as they passed whispered it, filling the gym with a cacaphony of their gratifying words. Thank you for her sacrifice, thank you for their lives.

Alya couldn't help but stand still, staring at Marinette. Every little piece of evidence she collected finally fit into place. The hood, the distance, the refusal to talk. The way the teachers treated her, the looks of sympathy she got from them in the halls. Because her legal gaurdian was registered with _is_ name. Everything Marinette had said to Ms. Bustier, what she had told Lila about sacrifice, it made sense. Because Marinette really did know self sacrifice. She was its definition.

Suddenly, a thought occured. _Whore_. Chloe had called her a whore and Mainette had snapped. Snapped because she resented that word. Because Marinette had whored herself to Chat Noir to save the city, to save the lives of people she didn't know. Ms. Bustier had asked if anyone would give themselves up for a stranger and everyone had said no. But Marinette didn't. She had given up her life without even being told.

And another image flashed through Alya's mind. _Birth control pills_. If Alya hadn't felt sick before, she sure as hell did now. Marinette had... She had been forced to- Alya couldn't even fathom how much emotional pain it was. _Sex._ Chat Noir terrorized a city and murdered thousands just to have it. With Marinette.

Alya hadn't even noticed she was crying until she needed to wipe her eyes because her vision had been obscured.

It must have only been a moment because no one had moved positions. So Alya did. She walked forward and placed a hand on Marinette's back as she sobbed.

"Just let it all out..." She forced out, her voice wobbly due to her own crying. "No one will judge you."

Marinette let go of the trash bin, curling in on herself in a tight ball against the concrete. And then she _sobbed_ with the energy of who-knows-how-long it had been. Tears were streaming down Alya's eyes, the wailing displaying exactly how much this girl had suffered and sacrificed. When had been the last time since she cried openly?

Alya didn't know Nino was there until he placed his hand overtop the one Alya had rested against Marinette's back. One by one, the class surrounded Marinette, not saying anything, just being there for her.

It took minutes or hours for Marinette to calm down, Alya had lost all perception on time. But the first thing she said afterward was, "If you touch me, he'll kill you..."

Alya was taken aback for a moment. "Why?"

"Jealousy." She and Nino hesitantly pulled there hands away and they heard Marinette sigh in relief.

"Why..." Alya cleared her throt, trying to find her voice. "Why would he be jealous?"

"Because he loves me..." Marinette said to the floor, voice muffled as she remained in a ball.

This, Alya had not been expecting. Lust at best, but never love.

"Enough to... to _kill_ someone if they so much as touched you?"

Slowly, Marinette lifted herself up, but stayed on her knees, looking at the wall, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.

"He's done it before. It's why you can't touch me, get close to me." Alya didn't expect her to continue, but she did. "I can't have friends because he'll get jealous, I can't stay away for too long or he comes to find me. I begged for months to get the opportunity to come here... I claimed it was because I wanted to finish Senior year, then I'd be happy to stay home with him for the rest of my life." She rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand. "But the truth is, I wanted some semblance of freedom before I'm locked up for the rest of my life. He wants at least _five_ kids. He won't wear condoms and I had to plead with him to get me birth control. He only relented when I said that I wouldn't be able to finish school if I got pregnant. Still, it's only for the school year. And he's also just holding onto the hope that the pills will fail just so he can pull me out of school...

Alya was about to tell Marinette she could stop if she wanted, but her words flooded out anyway. "I have bruises from when he's too rough and scatches from when he's tense. I have lovebites from when he's feeling protective and hickys from just about every night. My wrists have scars from when the cuffs are too tight, my legs have permanent rope burn." Mortified was a great way to describe how Alya was feeling. This girl, this selfless girl had endured _this_ for the sake of a city that only learned her name that day.

"I'm not allowed in the kitchen, so I get to eat what and when he wants me to. I'm usually supposed to keep to the bedroom but he lets me go in the living room to watch movies on the couch instead of fom the bed. When we have sex, it's never about his own pleasure, it's mine. 'It's for your own good' is his personal mantra. He says everything he does is for and about me, I'm the only good thing in his life." Marinette was silent as she finished, the class string at her with a mix of horror, absolute pity, and disbelief.

"Is there anything else you'd like to tell us, Marinette?" Ms. Bustier asked quietly.

She nodded slightly. "I used to go to Rosalinda High School." There wasn't a single person who didn't gasp, including Ms. Bustier. "It was my fault, what happened that day. It was just a normal day, until it wasn't." More tears followed. "Seven men came in with guns and took the school hostage. They were going to ransom us but... I had known Chat Noir for months before it happened. I knew about his obsession with me, but I didn't tell anyone. He had been stalking me that day... When he saw those me-" Marinette shuddered. "It was bloodshed. He murdered them all infront of everyone, just because he knew they were trying to hurt me. Everything was panic from there. Everyone ran away, trying to get to safety. And he killed _anyone_ that ran because, somewhere in his twisted mind, he saw it as them leaving me to die, which he counted the same as trying to kill me. So he murdered each personthat ran away because they didn't try to save me first..." Marinette buried her face in her hands. "After it was done with, he hid the bodies of the men and took me away. He kidnapped me and took me away from it all. And he forced himself on me for the first time that night. I cried the entire time, al he did was assure me that it was for my own good. He finally let me go a little over a week later."

Alya wanted to reach out to her, hold her close, but she stayed put. She couldn't touch Marinette, couldn't hug her. If Alya did, she'd die.

"And when I got home that night, I found out that he killed my parents." Alya swallowed, gritting her teeth to suffocate her own sob. "So I had no one left. No one at all but him. Because of this, I went straight to the Mayor and offered up my life to him for Chat to stop killing."

No one said a word as Marinette said one last thing. "And you know what the stupid thing is? I still love him back."

 **So... I got carried away and posted this early? Oops? Also, congrats to the reviewers who guessed correctly about what happened to Marinette, congrats! You know who you are, so good on you! I'd again like to say an absolute thank you for all the incredible support! (40 followers in 4 days, good grief) And thank you to all my reviewers! You all put smiles to my face every time I read them. :) And this story might be extended to a 5-6 part series. Probably will since I doubt I can wrap up the story in one more chapter, so I hope you want to see more. Also, would anyone like a Marinette P.O.V bonus chapter? Because I think I could be persuaded. To those who want to see Chat, never fear, for he will show up very soon. Also, I couldn't not to add the DJWifi moments, so you're welcome. Thank you for all the support. Take care! Miracle out!**


	4. Nothing You Say Will Scar My Mind

Alya lay awake that night, staring at the ceiling. She hadn't been able to fall asleep no matter what she'd tried. _Loved_ Marinette had said _loved_. She loved somebody. Not ony that, she loved _Chat Noir_. The man who had murdered thousands, including her own _parents_. And she said she loved him.

It wasn't possible, Alya concluded. Maybe she'd been told to say it so many times that she thought it was true. But no, Alya had seen that she meant it. Seen the disgust in Marinette's eyes as she had. Not disgusted with lying, but disgusted with herself for loving that monster after all he had put her through.

Nino had been furious. Not at Marinette, but that Chat Noir had gotten exactly what he wanted. When they got back to lass, Alya had had to bring him outside to talk him back to calm.

"Why is it that after _everything_ he did to us, he still gets what he wants?" Nino asked, pacing back and forth. "He killed so many people and the government just said, 'Wow, you're doing a great job! Here's your reward'." He let out a disbelieving huff. "Do they even realize what kind of message that sends? Criminals will look at that and realize, 'Hey, this guy killed so many people without getting caught that it forced a city to beg on its knees. I wonder if I can do that?'."

"Nino, breathe. If you just-"

"And another thing. They condemned a teenager to a lifetime of physical and psychological torture! Nono of what she said she has to go through is healthy! She's not allowed to be her own person."

Alya hadn't known what to say to that, so she had nodded somberly and listened. But as she lay awake, she couldn't stop playing that day over and over in her mind. And it didn't hit her until then that Marinette was stuck. No one was coming to save by her.

She jolted up at the realization, covers flying out at her speed. Marinette had no way out of this, it wasn't temporary, the Mayor had said _indefinite._ Marinette was legally the custody of Chat Noir, she couldn't run away because the police would be required by law to return her back to him. Forever.

Alya's breathing quickened. This wasn't some temporary shtick, Marinette was stuck there for _life_. And she had _accepted_ it.

Alya, however, had not. She pushed the rest of her covers off her, walking over o her desk and turning on her computer. She squinted for a moment as the monitor's brightnest lit up her dark room. When her eyes hd adjusted, Alya ppulled up google.

She stopped for a moment, fingers hovering over the keys. She drew a breath, preparing herself, and typed in...

 _Chat Noir_

As she hit enter, article after article was shoved in front of her eyes.

 _Chat Noir At Rosalinda High School, Thousands Left Dead_

 _Family Of Four Went Missing, Bodies Found Mutilated By Claw Marks_

Alya even saw a recent article, frowning at the title.

 _Parisian Mayor Rewards Chat Noir, Gives Him A Citizen?_

Alya scrolled for a bit before finding something that caught her attention, she clicked on the link. Alya had never been interested in Chat Noir when his career in crime was at its most publicized. She honestly tried to avoid it, so if she was going to help Marinette get out of this, she needed to have her facts straight.

 _Up To Date List Of Chat Noir Murders_

Alya's jaw dropped as she saw the total number of deaths at the top. _Holy shit..._ _This_ was the man Marinette claimed to love? The list was alphabetized by last name, some of the names of younger victims had been redacted for privacy issues. She scanned the list until two names in particular caught her eye. Gabriel Agreste and Adrien Agreste.

Alya had remembered the day they were reported dead _very_ vividly. It had been before but definitely hadn't been as big as the Rosalinda Massacre, but seeing as the Agreste's were the biggests supporters on the capture of Chat Noir, making weekly donations to the cause, it had been a big deal when it was found that Chat Noir had sunk his teeth into them.

Alya clicked on Adrien's name, which led her to an article published a few days after his death. Alya began to read.

~~~

After the first article, Alya couldn't stop herself from further examining the two Paisian icons. As it turned out, Adrien had been the one to convince his father to start funding the police department's efforts to stop Chat Noir, as stated in an interview with the father and son during March that year. Adrien was had said he knew that Chat Noir had to be stopped in order for the city to have true peace.

But that wasn't what had drawn Alya in. It was the fact that later on, several sources had stated that Adrien began acting... weird. After their first public statement, many reporters had been cited saying that Agreste Jr. was different. Sometimes he would ask them to repeat a question multiple times even though they were sitting right next to each other. Others, he would interrupt the interviewer saying strange and confusing things. But everything seemed to reach its peak a week before the father and son were killed, when Adrien went to an interview with a black eye.

The following week, Gabriel Agreste was found dead in his office, bleeding out onto the floor. Adrien was pronounced dead too, though they never found his body. They didn't need to. Some of his blood had been smeared in the wall of his room.

'I made hime suffer!'

Police had stated that all evidence pointed to Chat being the culprit. They claimed that it was most probable that Adrien had been tortured by the serial killer over the months, which was what likely the cause his mental lapse.

Morale after the Agreste murders had been really low, especially because it showed that supporters of Chat Noir's downfall were shown to have bloody targets painted on their backs.

Alya leaned back in her chair, obsorbing all the information. Something still didn't sit riht with her, but she wasn't sure what.

And thus began a sleepless night for Alya as she continued her search for any information that could help Marinette.

~~~

A took another sip of the coffee she had brewed at one am., eyes strained in concentration as she reread the paragraph on the screen _for_ the- _what was it?_ It was either the third or the eighth time, Alya couldn't remember.

Alya blinked, her eyelids heavy with the weight of sleep. _3:27_ , displayed the time on her computer. But she had to keep going, any information about Chat Noir was vital to helping Marinette, from what times and days he struck, to the miniscule amount of consistent descriptions.

The thing, Alya had discovered about Chat Noir, was that he killed anyone who saw him. The only time the detectives on is case ever got a big chuck of description was through the last voice recordings of fallen police officers before they were taken out. The only reason, apparently, that they knew to call him 'Chat Noir' was because of one of the killer's earliest murders.

Two men working at a convenience store, both found with knives in their backs when the next employees came in to take their places. Police had discovered the video surveillance system. had been broken, but the voice recordings had not.

The killer had said only a few things to his victims before they were killed, one had been his name. As such, that had given the city a name to the murders. As time went on, police had attempted to catch him, only to be killed in the process. What made matters worse was that no one knew what made him so strong, so powerful. Alya had found a few crackpot theories online that to at were _positive_ magic was involved. Alya had needed to restrain herself from rolling her eyes.

Overall, Chat Noir was a complete mystery to the public. Age, identity, height, hair color, and body type were completely unknown. Police didn't even have a clue. _No wonder they couldn't catch him_ , Alya thought to herself, swallowing another gulp of coffee.

The only person who had seen Chat Noir and lived, besides Marinette, was the Mayor, who was sworn to secrecy about anything he saw when Chat Noir signed the agreement. Speaking of the Mayor, he was getting a lot of backlash about his decision, but also a lot of thank you's.

Marinette also had a lot of thank you's. Not that anyone knew who she was or what she looked like. Alya had been surprised to see nothing on social meda outing Marinette to be a student of François Dupont, but there was nothing to be found. She couldn't help but feel proud of her school for being so mature and understanding about this.

 _CRASH!_

Alya jolted as she heard a noise from behind her. She stood up and ran over to her curtains to peak out the window. She squinted her eyes, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. _What was that?_ The street lamp across the street flickered slightly and Alya narrowed her eyes a bit. Still, nothing was different. So where had the sound come from?

The brunette surveyed the dark city street once more before slowly backing up and closing the curtains again. _That was weird..._

She returned to her computer, her eyes scanning the words but her mind not registering them. If she was honest, it was a bit frustrating to have so little information.

Alya paused as a thought entered her mind. _That's it!_ Alya closed her tabs, all the information she had collected. Oh, she was such an idiot. Had she only been this smart to start off, she would have been able to sleep that night.

She threw herself on top of her bed, climbing under the covers. She still had a few hours left to sleep. As long as the caffeine wore off soon...

As Alya closed her eyes, she couldn't believe how dumb she'd been. It was simple. No one else knew about Chat Noir, so why not just ask Marinette? Marinette would probably be on board with helping her out, right? _There's no way she's actually in love with Chat Noir. He must have brainwashed her so much that she eventually thought she was telling the truth whenever she said it._

With that, Alya drited off to sleep...

Almost.

The coffee hadn't worn off yet.

~~~

The next day, Alya walked to school with a swing in her step. Once Marinette gave her information, Alya could tell the police and they'd finally be able to apprehend Chat Noir.

She turned down the corridor and into the-

Woah, that was a lot of people. In the gym, people had crowded into a giant group. Alya couldn't see what was going on. She tried stand on her toes to loolook over, but all she ended up seeing was a bunch of heads and hair.

"Alya!"

She turned at her boyfriend's voice. Nino shoved his way out of the crowd, walking over to her.

"Nino, what's going on? What's everyone looking at?" She gestured to the crowd, the noises from the teenagers cause Alya to raise her volume halfway through asking.

"Depends on who you ask," Nino told her, his voice strained in order to be heard. Alya looked at him, the emotion in his eyes.

"It's Marinette, isn't it..." She said at last.

Nino gave a single nod. "That's a big chunk of it. First, let's start off with what everyone's mad at."

He dug around in his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He handed it over for her to read.

"'All students must stay after school today- wait what? What _is_ this? What does this have to do with Marinette?" she aske, waving the paper in the air.

"Oh, no, this isn't about Marinette. Yesterday, someone pushed the janitor down the stairs to the boiler room after school got out." Alya gasped, a hand covering her mouth. "He's fine, but he's in the hospital with a broken leg. The Principal is sure it was a student, but has no proof. And, whoever did it stole his keys, so they now have access to the entire school. So everyone has to stay here until one of us fesses up." Nino explained, shaking his head.

"What? I get that it's a serious issue, but why are we all being punished for what someone else did?" Alya demanded. "It's stupid!"

Nino placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't get too worked up, yet. I still haven't explained Marinette."

Alya straightened, her expression dissolving into gaurded suspense. "What is it?"

He opened his mouth for a moment but closed it. "I think... it's best if I show you..." He grabbed her by the arm and began to drag her through the crowd. Eventually, they elbowed and pushed their way to the front.

"So?" Alya asked.

Nino just pointed.

Alya turned her head to see Marinette-

 _Holy god damn mother of hell._

Marinette sat on a bench with a small journal, pencil moving as she either wrote or drew, Alya couldn't tell from her position. But that's not where Alya's attention was drawn. No, her eyes went past her spaghetti-strap crop top, miniskirt, and raven hair she had put up in pig tails. Instead, her eyes roved over Marinette's very visible and very prominent skin.

Marinette was _covered_ in scars. Pink claw marks decorated every plain of her body. Over her arms, on her neck, down her collar bone to her stomach. But it wasn't just scratches. No, there were bruises and bite marks, hickeys and areas of skin permanently stained. Her wrists had red rings from the supposed cuffs mentioned the day before.

Alya suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Marinette hadn't been exaggerating in the slightest. She almost choked as she took it all in. Nino wrapped his arms around her waist, probably trying to keep her from falling over.

"Shh, shh. Calm down, Alya..." He whispered in her ear.

"Why...?" Alya asked quietly. "Why is he allowed to do this? It's so unfair! Why her?"

She looked at Marinette again, who seemed to have blocked out or ignored the crowd that stood a few yards away.

"There's nothing we can do, Alya."

Alya ripped herself away. "No. There's nothing we're _choosing_ to do. You all might have given up, but I sure as hell haven't."

She ignored his protests and the quieting of the crowd she walked toward Marinette. She kept walking until, the only sound in the courtyard was her footsteps.

She stood three feet in front of her and asked simply, arms crossing over her chest, "Why are you wearing that?"

Marinette didn't even take her eyes off of the paper as she said, "Chaton gets territorial. Now that you all know who and what I am, he's taking the opportunity to show everyone exactly who I belong to." Alya stiffened at the pet name.

"Why did you do this to yourself?"

Marinette brought the sides of the notebook together, the noise loud enough that Alya flinched. Marinette looked up, not a single emotion running through her expression. "Why do you like asking questions that will make him jealous enough to kill you?"

Alya narrowed her eyes. "Because he can't. Not with you here."

Marinette didn't reply, just bent over and shoved her journal into her backpack. She stood up, slinging the backpack over her shoulder. Finally, she looked at Alya once again and said, "Why is it that no matter new facade I show, you always try and dig past the surface? I've tried not talking, you took it as an invitation to be my friend. I've tried intimidation, it only made you back off for about 3.5 seconds. I even tried throwing a pity party, which only seemed to have driven you closer. Everyone else here has gotten the picture." She gestured to the now-watching crowd of bystanders and took a step closer, looking up at Alya. "If you get close to me you die, that's the deal. I meant it when I said you wouldn't like the consequences of trying to befriend me. But I wasn't referring to me. Alya, he _doesn't care_ about some goddamn agreement. He has everything he could possibly want, now. The only reason he hasn't broken his side of the deal is because I've stayed loyal and people aren't being stupid. So why can't you just be like everyone else and _leave me alone_

Alya shook her head. "Because I can't just sit back and watch someone slowly kill themselves for me. Everyone else has, but I won't. I am _going_ to get you out of this Marinette! I won't let you be a slave!"

Marinette just laughed coldly. "You're probably one of the most selfless people I've ever met. Had all of this," she gestured to her scars, "not happened, we probably could have been friends. Probably _would've_ been friends." Alya relaxed a bit at that. " _But_ ," she continued. "It _has_ happened so we can't. This is my choice and my path. I'm already a dead girl, Alya. Don't try to resurrect me." Marinette turned on her heel and walked away, every pair of eyes trailing after her.

Alya clenched her fist. She would _not_ just leave it there. So Alya chased after her.

Because she was going the help Marinette or die trying.

~~~

Alya ignored the bell as it rang out, signaling the start of class. No, school could wait today, this was important. She climbed the steps to the library two at a time, rushing up the brick stairs.

As she reached thw landing she paused at the wooden doors, her hand straying above the handle. _Should I really be doing this?_ Alya swallowed. _It's- It's not my place..._

But... Marinette was it trouble. That had to stand for something. So Alya straightened her posture, took a deep breath, and forced the door open.

The hinges creaked as she pushed the door and Alya cringed. The librarian, she noted, was turned away. She took the opportunity to duck behind a bookcase before she was caught and sent back to class. Marinette, it seemed, had an alday access to the library. _Interesting_.

Alya's vision briefly swept over the study area she hid in. Nothing. A silent sweep of the outer edge of the library proved the same. _Where could she be?_

Alya stood between the shelves, pondering. Marinette couldn't have just disappeared into thin air. Alya had _seen_ her come in here. She teased her lip with her teeth, a nervous habit she had yet to get rid of. She was about to give up and just go to class when her gaze fell on the stairs to the second level. Alya wanted to hit her head against a desk. Of course! How could she have been so stupid.

After checking to make sure the librarian's attention was still elsewhere, Alya snuck towards the stairs and hastily climbed them so as not to be seen. As soon as she reached the top, she backed into the shelves and pressed herself against them.

When she was sure she wouldn't be spotted, she began sidestepping along the bookcases.

"You realize you look ridiculous, right?"

Alya whipped her head, turning to see Marinette sitting in the corner on top of a bright pink bean bag chair surrounded by stacks of books, blankets, and other colorful cushions. Her backpack was shoved off the the side and Marinette had a book in her hands.

Alya opened her mouth only to shut it, unable to think of something to say.

Marinette set down her book and loomed up at Alya. "No one really comes up here anymore, or so I'm told; the librarian said I could come here if I ever needed a place to think."

Alya blinked, still unsure what to say. "I- uh, I'm-"

"Would you like to sit down?" Marinette asked, gesturing towards a matching bean bag chair, only a dark shade of purple.

Alya nodded dumbly, setting her back pack next to Marinette's and plopping down next to her.

"Listen, Alya," the girl started. "I get what your trying to do, and I'm thankful, I really arm." Marinette let loose a half smile that only partially reached her eyes. "I'm sorry for yelling back there, but it's not frequently I get the chance to express my opinions. Please forgive me if I was a bit rude."

Alya wasn't sure how to react. Minutes ago, Marinette had been yelling, a completely differnt person. And now she was acting calm and rational? Things didn't add up.

"Why act differently at all?" Alya questioned, finally finding words.

"It's like I said. I'm dangerous. Chat... Well, he gets jealous. So I try and push people away so they don't have a chance to get close, so they won't be hurt because of me." Her voice quieted as she spoke, the raven haired girl looking at her palms. "Of course, you had to get in the way and keeping poking at a dead fire until it sparked back."

"But... The agreement. He said he wouldn't kill..." Alya tried to assure herself.

"Well, it's not like he's _said_ he would break it on a moments notice..." Marinette started.

"But you don't trust he'll keep his word?" Alya finished for her.

Blue eyes met hazel. "Exactly."

"If that's the case, how would he even know? He's not- wait, is he watching the school?" Nausea began to pool in the pit of her stomach.

"No, no!" Marinette rushed out quickly, waving her hands in front of her. "At least, I don't think so. Why else would he put a tracker on me if he wasn't there to watch me."

"Wait, you have a tracker?" Alya replied, brows raising.

Marinette drew a hand to her chest, drawing at a silver chain Alya hadn't noticed before. Marinette lifted it out of her shirt to display a silver disk with a green circle embedded in it. "Part of the deal for me being able to go to school is that he knows where I am at all times. And if I'm in danger, I press the green circle a he'll know."

"Why are you even telling me this? I thought you hated me."

Marinette shook her head. "I have no one else. It's awkward to tell teachers this sort of thing, so I keep the details mostly to myself. You seemed interested already, might as well tell you. I had to put on a show downstairs so no on else would try, but I knew you'd come after me."

"Didn't you say that would put me in danger, to get near you?" Alya crossed her arms over her chest in suspicion.

"One person couldn't hurt. Besides," Marinette responded. "You seem to be the type of person who laughs in the face of danger."

Alya chuckled. "You could say that."

"Well, now that you've cornered me, anything else you want to ask?" Marinette cocked her head.

"Are you kidding? Of course! How did you know all that stuff about Chloe? How did you convince Chat Noir to let you go to school? Why is Chat Noir in love with you? Do you know who he is? How old is he? How is he able to take on multiple police officers at a time and come back swinging? Where do you live? It sounds like you live with him, so why haven't you told police where to find him? What are his motives behind killing all thoughs people? Does he regret killing?"

"Uh, wow. You've... thought about this a lot." Marinete said awkwardly.

"Of course! I want to free you. I mean, he's just one guy, if we catch him off gaurd then we can save you!" Alya breathed.

"What? Free me? Alya, you can't!"

"Why not? I'm sure it's possible. You didn't think you'd be with him the rest of your life did you?" Alya asked, confused.

"You don't understand. I'm not happy with my circumstances, but I'm not leaving him. I love him."

"But... just look at your scars! Good God, Marinette, what does he do to you? You're so sad and mopey all the time, you have no freedom. There's no way you love him for real."

There's silence before Marinette responds, deadly serious, "There are many things you could never hope to understand. Hell, I don't understand them myself." Marinette huffs, her breathing going erratic. "Why _do_ I love him? He kills people, he's crazy, he hurts me, he's possesive. He controls every aspect of my life! What is wrong with me? I think I'm going insane!" Marinette cups her cheeks in her hands, eyes going wide, breathing even more frantically. Her talking speeds up. "I can't do this, I can't do this, I can't do this. Maybe I'm the crazy one and he's the pyschopath." Marinette starts laughing unevenly, clutching her head, eyes staring at nothing.

It's at this point, Alya takes action. She grabs Marinette by the shoulders and looks at her. "Marinette, you are not crazy."

The girl blinks, eyes focusing slightly.

"You have been through more than some people have in their entire lives. You are strong and brave. Say it with me. I am strong and brave."

"Strong and brave..." She whispered back, nodding slightly.

"I am confident and I will stand proud." Alya told her.

"I am confident and I will stand proud." The light was returning to her eyes, her breaths slowing with the rise and fall of her chest."

"And I will, get through this and be free again."

"And I will get through this."

Alya stuck her with a look and Marinette swallowed but still didn't say anything.

After several seconds of silence, Alya relented. Baby steps. It was obvious this was going to go no where any time soon.

"Sorry..." Marinette said quietly. "I get like that sometimes. Usually Chat calms me down though... Or works me up."

Alya chose to ignore the innuendo and instead proceeded, "I'm here to talk if you need to get things off your chest but know that I'm not giving up on you." She told Marinette, wagging a finger at her. Alya began to stand up again, only for Marinette to grab her by the wrist.

"Umm, could you not leave yet?" She asked, giving the closest thing to puppy dog eyes Alya had ever seen. "I can tell Ms. Bustier to let you off the hook. I seem to recall you asking some questions earlier..." She trailed off.

"Shut up, really?" Alya gasped.

Marinette nodded.

"Sweet!" Alya sat back down.

Marinette blinked. "Before I start, know I can and will skip over questions I can't or don't feel comfortable enough to answer."

Alya waved a hand nonchalantly, beginning to rummage in her backpack. She pulled out a spiral and a pencil before eagerly turning to Marinette.

"What are those for?"

"Taking notes." Alya answered, not elaborating.

"Okay, whatever. For your first question..."

~~~

 **Hello everyone! Firstly, I am so sorry for the hiatus. Some stuff happened and writers block and all that sucky stuff. Can't say that the next part, and final part, will be soon, but know within the month you will get the end. Also, Marinette's tracker is basically Chat Noir's tracker that he put on Kim in Animan but on a necklace. And, in case you were, wondering, I have decided to do bonus chapters for Marinette. So after the final part, there will 1-2 chapters from her perspective. I'll probably up the rating for that because... reason, so keep your eyes peeled. Anyway, have a nice day/night depending where you are. Miracle out!**


	5. This Is Your Dead End Pt 1

"Ow!" Alya clutched her wrist, dropping her pencil onto the notebook in her lap.

Marinette stopped midsentence and raised a single confused eyebrow.

"Sorry," Alya winced, massaging her right palm with the fingers of her other hand. "hand cramp."

The raven haired girl let out a sound of understanding. "Do you want me to stop? We can continue this later, if you want."

"No, I'm fine. Keeping going," Alya urged.

Marinette nodded and picked up where she left off. "Anyway, so as I was saying, then Chat appeared on my roof-"

"Why do you call him 'Chat'?" Alya interrupted. "I noticed you've been doing that a lot. But why not 'Noir'? It's weird to me because all anyone's ever really called him is Chat Noir."

"Oh, that? It's just easier. He also likes to think of 'Noir' as more of a last-name type thing. Plus, he likes nicknames." Marinette fidgetted a little, fingers toying with one of her pigtails.

"Nicknames?" Alya repeated, a bit skeptical.

Marinette hummed in affirmation. "He has at least a dozen for me, though he does have favorites. I started calling him Chat because it felt more natural."

"Uhuh..." Alya nodded slowly, clenching and unclenching her right hand before grabbing her pencil and jotting down the new information. "You don't have any nicknames for him, do you?"

"I do, actually. I would've thought you noticed. I called him by them earlier." Marinette bit her lip, her cheeks darkening in color.

Alya blinked. Surely she would have caught that. "I'm drawing a blank. Remind me?"

"Umm... They're a bit embarrassing." Marinette flushed a shade even darker.

"Oh. Okay, then. You... don't need to say them if you feel uncomfortable." Alya tried to keep the disappointment out of her tone. She knew it worked when Marinette sighed in what could only be described as relief.

"I appreciate that." She rubbed her eyes a bit. "This is... a bit harder than I thought it would be. Telling someone, that is. But..." Marinette paused. "But I'm glad I'm doing it. I feel like it's helping, at least a bit."

Alya offered her a small smile. "Hey. It's what I'm here for."

Marinette giggled. "You know, if journalism doesn't work out for you, you should consider becoming a therapist."

"Hmm..." Alya pretended to consider. "Maybe I just might. But how does that make you feel..." she leaned forward dramatically, pressing her pencil against the paper.

This time, Marinette let out a laugh, only to gasp, covering her mouth with her hands. She continued to laugh, however, her shoulders shaking and her eyes bright. "Sorry," Marinette said in between laughs. "I just didn't expect that."

"Don't apologies for laughing. That's what jokes are for." Alya grinned as Marinette calmed down, only a small giggle escaping every now and then.

"I guess you're right." Marinette smiled. But it didn't last. Her lips quivered and fell into a frown. "It's been a while since I've heard a joke. Or at least, a good joke..."

A pang of sadness rang through Alya and she quickly changed the topic. "I think you've answered enough for today. Do you want me to walk you back to class? Do you need anything? Water? Snacks?" _A new home, boyfriend, and life?_ "No, I'm fine." Marinette said quickly. She hugged her knees to her chest. "I'll probably get a drink from the water fountain a little later, but I can do that myself."

"You sure? I wanna make sure you're comfortable before I go back to class. You're still going to tell the teachers it's cool I was gone, right?" Alya asked, standing up and slinging her backpack over her shoulder, cradling her notebook and pencil in her arms.

"I'll be okay. And yes, I'll let the teachers know you were talking to me. I think they'll understand." Marinette smiled up at her. "You go, I'm going to take some time to collect myself."

Alya nodded and began walking but paused before she even made it two steps. "There's no way I can give you my phone number, right?"

"I don't even have a phone anymore." Marinette said softly. _Anymore_ , Alya thought. _Anymore, indeed._

She continued walking along the bookcases, pivoting on her heel once she reached the stairs.

"Alya?" Marinette called out, her tone sounding desperate.

Alya turned back to her, looking at Marinette. Marinette had risen to her feet and was facing Alya. She had an arm wrapped around her torso and her blue eyes were wide with what Alya could only describe as fear.

"What? What is it?" Alya asked worriedly.

Marinette opened her mouth, only to tense up. She hesitated before saying. "Nothing. Just... Thank you for being my friend."

Alya waited for her to say more but she didn't so Alya replied, "and thank you for being mine." With that, Alya walked down the steps and out the library door.

~~~

It was lunch by the time Alya had gotten back, thank goodness. Even if she knew Marinette would keep to her word, it still wasn't a good idea to walk into class with no excuse as to why you're late. Unless, of course, you're Marinette. Eitherway, the rest of the day passed in a blur. Marinette, notably, had been absent up until the last period. But, as usual, no one said anything about her tardiness. By the time the bell rang, Alya was mentally exhausted and ready to go home.

She packed up her bag, collecting her supplies, and headed out the door, Nino close at her side.

"Alya? This morning you went after Marinette and then... poof, you were gone. It's like you disappeared. Where did you go?" her boyfriend asked suddenlyas they walked down the upstairs hallway and towards the staircase tl the first floor.

Alya stopped walking for a moment. Nino hadn't had the nerve to broach the subject at lunch. He hadn't even remarked on her absence when she walked into the lunch room and sat down next to him.

Should she lie? It's not like it was a secret. But would Marinette want it to be a secret? Finally, Alya just decided to be honest. "I was talking to Marinette."

"Talking? What, like a conversation?" They continued walking, reaching the stairs and clamoring down the metal steps.

"Yeah, like a conversation. We just hung out in the library for a while." Alya explained.

"How on earth did you manage to have a _conversation_ with Marinette?" Nino questioned, voice low.

"It's- She's- She needed someone to talk to, Nino. So... I was that someone." They reached the pavement of the gym floor and only reached a few steps before they stoppped completely again, the exit blocked by a mass of students.

"What is all this?" Alya hissed to Nino, concerned.

"Damn, that's right! I totally forgot about it." Nino let out a frustrated huff.

"What is it? What's going on?" Alya asked again, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Remember how I told you what happened to the Janitor this morning? And that the school had to-"

"Stay after. That's right! Ugh. They can't just keep us all here without any proof. Come on, Nino." Alya grabbed her boyfriend by the arm and started dragging him through the crowd, shoving past people.

"You can't just yell at the teachers, Alya! You're going to get us both in trouble." Nino called to her, voice straining to be heard over the choruses of complaints fro, the students surrounding them.

Alya ignored him and kept pushing forward, eventually finding herself at the bottom of the short staircase that led to the _closed_ school doors. The Principal stood at the top stairs, ushering everyone to be quiet and stay calm.

So far, it seemed no student had had the nerve to get close to him, hence the reason the landing the man was standing on was empty. Alya didn't give a shit. She let go of Nino and stomed forward.

"Mr. Damocles, you can't just keel us here against our wills! That's called kidnapping. You have no right to force us to stay here without proof! No one has your stupid keys!" Alya yelled at the Principal.

Everyone in the crowd quited as they saw Alya.

"Ms. Cesaire, I have every right. One of you stole from the school and it is my job to find out who."

"Oh, really? Then what proof do you have that it was a student who has the keys? For all we know, the janitor could still have them! They could be with his things at the hospital and you would be none the wiser!" Alya retorted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Alya-" Nino hissed.

"Shut up, Nino." Alya silenced him.

This turned out to be meaningless, however, when the students began to cry out.

"Yeah! You have no proof! Why can't we just go home?"

"We've been here all day and no one's fessed up? What's the point!"

"Let us go!"

The crowd started chanting. " **Let us go! Let us go! Let us go!** "

"Enough!" The Principal yelled and the students immediately stopped. "You're all in after school detention. That's final."

"Mr. Damocles?" A stusent in the crowd asked.

"I said that's final."

" _Mr. Damocles!_ "

The Principal finally turned to see who was talking.

Marinette walked up the small flight of stairs, a single backpack strap swung over her shoulder. "I can't stay."

"And why- Oh." He swallowed in realization. "That's right. Your... arrangement."

Marinette only nodded.

"Well, yes, then. I suppose you can't stay."

Marinette repeated her previous action.

The entire gym was completely silent, the tension so thick it was practically tangible.

"May I go?" Marinete asked tentatively after the quiet moment passed.

"Oh!" Mr. Damocles exclaimed, stepping out of the way of the closed doors and pulling out a key, unlocking them and hoding the door for her. "Have a good day, Ms. Dupain-Cheng."

Marinette didn't respond. She only stepped out the double doors and walked away as Mr. Damocles shut the doors behind her.

~~~

Long story short, Mr. Damocles had kept to his word, forcing all students to stay afterschool two extra hours despite the multitudes of angry phone calls from parents. To make matters worse, since kids just ended up using their phones to pass the time, the Principal had ordered them to start cleaning the building.

Chloe, of course, was exemplified, much to the dismay of _everyone in existence._ Alya had had some not-so kind things to say about it. But, the students were let go after the two hours, and sent on their way.

Alya hadn't gotten home until five thirty, flopping onto her bed in exhaustion. But she hadn't gotten more than three minutes of rest before she had to start work on her chores, homework, and watching her younger sisters. By the end of the day, she was wiped, mentally and physically. Still, she could think of worse things to endure than responsibility. _A lot worse things..._

Howefer, Alya hadn't let herself rest yet, she still considered herself obligated to research Chat Noir in order to help Marinette, and that's exactly what she did.

Until she fell asleep at her keyboard. And because of this, she unfortunately was never able to set her alarm.

Alya awoke the next morning only because a few rays of light were able to filter in through her curtians and force her into conciousness. When she had been awakened, Alya immediately checked the time, only to cry out in realization that if she didn't get ready to leave right away, she would be late for school.

She ended up scrambling to get dressed, pack her bags, shove an apple in her mouth, and leave, within nine minutes. To be f fair, Alya was pretty sure it was her new record. So Alya ended up having a very awful start to the day. Hopefully, though, it would get better.

As Alya went up the steps to the school, she panted, having run the entire way there. She entered the school, eyes searching for her friends.

"Alya! Over here!" Nino waved her over to her locker where he was waiting. She made her way to him, kissing him on the cheek before opening her locker.

"Sorry I'm late, Nino. Forgot to set my alarm." Alya set her backpack on the hook and retieved her school supplies.

"That's rough," he answered sympathetically. Alya shut her locker and turned to him only to see him sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

"What?" she asked him.

"Um, you didn't happen to forget to do Ms. Bustier's history project, did you?"

Alya blinked and said slowly, "We had an assignment yesterday...?"

Nino nodded, seeming ashamed.

"What?" Alya began freaking out, pulling the ends of her hair. "But I wasn't there! And Marinette is suppoosed to cover for me."

"She was?" It's Nino's turn to look confused. "That doesn't sound like something she would do. Especially since it involves talking.

Alya elbowed him in the gut. "Shut up, she said she was."

"Whatever you say, Dudette," Nino rubbed the spot she elbowed, not sounding convinced in the slightest.

When they made it to class, Alya gave Nino a triumphant smile when Ms. Bustier had nothing to say to Alya about her absence the previous day. She did, however, give Alya the criteria for the project she missed when the teacher collected those of the other students.

"Speaking of which," Ms. Bustier said in a hushed tone."Thank you for talking to her. I know I said not to, and the methods you took to initiate conversation weren't good, but I'm glad Marinette had someone her age to relay her situation to."

"It wasn't a problem, Ma'am."

"Next time, though," her teacher told her, suddenly becoming serious. "Don't stick your nose into other people's business. They might not be so accommodating." Having said that, Ms. Bustier walked back to the front of the room and continued with the lesson.

Halfway through the lesson, Marinette, classically late as she always was, walked into the classroom and took her seat. Alya also couldn't help but notice that gone were her revealing clothes from the day before. She still had no hoodie, bt she was now clad in a plain dark long-sleeve shirt and black leggings. Today she wore her hair down, but wore a dark gray, beanie with the occasionally sparkly thread. It was quite the contrast to the outfit of the previous day, making Alya ponder the reason Chat Noir had forced her to dress in such a way. For either days. Perhaps to flaunt his "possession" before taking "it" out of reach once more. It sure made a statement.

As Alya started to return her attention back to her teacher, the intercom crackled and Mr. Damocle' wavering voice drone, "W-Would Marinette Dupain Cheng and Alya Cesaire please come to the Principals Office? Thank you."

The classroom was quiet as Alya slowly peaked over her shoulder to Marinette, who looked down at her with a curious looking expression that Alya was unable to decipher. The one emotion Alya _was_ able to make out was worry.

Dread and fear sank in the pit of her stomach as she got up and went to the door. What was this even about? As far as she knew, they hadn't done anything wrong. Maybe it was about them skipping class? Well, Alya understood why she might be called, but Marinette? Marinette had an excuse. Or at least, Alya thought she did.

Alya stepped out of the classroom, Marinette close behind her. Neither spoke until they had shut the classroom door.

"Do you have any idea what this is about?" Alya whispered hurriedly.

"None." Marinette replied just as quietly, voice filled with apprehension.

"Glad we're on the same page, at least." Alya said, trying to make light of the situation.

"I just don't get it. You would think they'd be to afraid to call me to the Principal's office. It's not like they'd want to speak with my gaurdian." Marinette's jaw tightened as she ground out the words.

"You do have a point." Alya replied, stopping when she realized they were right in front of the office door. "Do you want to knock or should I?" She asked Marinette, trying to stall for time to collect herself.

"You do it." Marinette fidgetted, toying with a strand of her hair.

Alya drew in a breath, raised her knuckles, and tapped them lightly against the wooden door.

"Come in..." said a low masculine voice. It sounded off to Alya, but that was most likely due to the muffled affect of speaking through the door.

So Alya pushed forward and opened the door-

She gasped, stumbling back, almost running into Marinette in the process. She heard Marinette breathe sharply and sww her stiffen, eyes wide with terror. Alya imagined she was wearing a simliar expression on her face. For sitting in the office chair was not their Principal, but a young man dressed head-to-toe in a skin tight leather suit. The man was leaned back in the chair with both legs crossed and resting atop the desk.

"Shut the door, Ms. Cesaire. We have much to talk about." The man said as he sat up, brushing shaggy blond locks from his eyes. _His eyes._ They were entirely green, even the sclera, with pupils like slits, and outline in a leather mask that matched his suit. "And Princess, don't be a wall flower, you know how much I love seeing you." Green eyes clouded with lust, as he looked Marinette up and down, seemingly drinking in her mere presence.

No, Alya didn't even need to ask to know who this man was. Even if the _real_ cat ears settled in his blond hair hadn't proved it, the words did. Alya was in the presence of Chat Noir.

"K-Kitty," Alya heard Marinette whisper weakly. It sounded like a plea.

"Shut the door." Was the response she got.

Marinette scrambled for the door handle, only for Chat Noir to hiss, "Not you, M'lady. Ms. Cesaire. You're too delicate to do manual labor."

Alya grit her teeth and complied, slowly shutting the door. She knew she should cry for help, run, shout, or do anything else, but it wasn't the best idea to anger a serial killer, so Alya kept quiet and silently seethed. _This_ was the man Marinette said she loved? This man was a manipulative, stuck up, scum bag, that didn't deserve te light of day.

Alya glared at the murderer before her. Her eyes stuck on the cat ears, and her eyes widened as she came to a realization. They were actual cat ears. How was that even possible? And what the hell was with the leather suit?

"Staring is rude, you know." Alya's gaze flicked down as she met his green eyes.

"So is killing people," she fired back before she could stop herself, almost immediately regretting it.

"Touché." the villain said simply. He leaned forward on the desk, using his elows to rest his head on his hands. His gaze flicked back to Marinette who was still frozen at Alya's side. "Hello darling, it's nice to see you." Chat Noir's smile had to be the most hideous and completely _wrong_ thing Alya had ever seen.

"Wh-What are you doing here, Kitty?" Marinette asked, finding her voice, though it faltered due to her trembling.

Chat Noir frowned and sat up again, arms crossing over his chest, pulling Alya's attention briefly to the shiny golden bell at his neck. "Why do you think I'm here, Marinette?"

The raven haired girl flicnhed, swallowing, closing her eyes, and shaking her head. "I don't- I don't know."

Chat Noir loosed a disapproving hum, the corner of his lip twisting down even further.

Alya clenched a fist behind her back, aching to send it straight into Chat Noir's nose. As if sensing her thoughts, the criminal turned his head away from Marinette, almost unwillingly, she noted, to look at Alya.

"Don't mind the Principal, he's just taking a nap." Alya was confused by the words until Chat Noir looked down and to her right.

Alya's gaze drifted to where he was and she shrieked, finally seeing the body of the Principal tied up and gagged on the floor. She side stepped and almost ran into Marinette for a second time.

"For the record," Chat Noir's voice droned with irritation, "he's not dead, so quit being so dramatic, Cesaire. And more importantly, don't even think about touching my property again. I don't care if it's an accident, you're throat will be slit faster than you can blink."

It was at that moment Alya noticed the many, many, knives laying precariously on the wooden desk, all sharp and honed to kill.

"Kitty, you promised. No killing, remember? _You. Promised._ " Marinette begged, taking several steps closer to Chat Noir, Alya did not follow suit.

"I did, sweet heart." Chat Noir told Marinette, his voice softening to a near-patronizing level. "But I also seem to recall adding a clause to my agreement stating anyone who stands in my way of keeping you will see judgement." He narrowed his eyes at Alya. "And "judgment" can be determined in many, many, ways."

"Please, Chaton, she's done nothing wrong. Just let her go!" Marinette let out a whimper, her entire body shaking as she let out a sound close to a sob. "I'm here," Marinette took the final steps towards the desk, leaning over and placing her hand over his heart. "I'm yours. _Please."_

Alya watched as Chat Noir's eyes darkened and he placed one of his hands over Marinette's, standing up out of his seat and walking around the desk, never letting go.

He pressed himself up against Marinette, and brought his unoccupied hand to her chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes. Alya had to fight the urge to puke right onto Chat Noir's shiny polished boots. _Despicable._ That's what he was. This was a power move, a way to control Marinette.

"Ever since you started talking to this girl, love, you've started changing." Chat Noir whispered to Marinette, their faces inches apart.

Alya watched as Marinette's eyes widened. "No! It isn't like that! She doesn't mean anything to me, I'm yours!" she jerked her head, but Chat Noir kept his grip on her chin.

Alya wanted to scream, punch, and kick. She shouldn't just be standing there, _letting_ this happen. _Paris_ shouldn't be letting this happen.

"You've even started lying to me..." Alya didn't think it was possible for his face to darken even more than it already had, but it did.

" _What?_ Adri- Chat, I love you. I'm not lying!" Marinette tried protesting, but Chat Noir only pressed her closer to him, tantilizingly dragging his hand down her neck and reaching under the hem of her shirt and pulling out Marinette's necklace.

He caressed the circular tracking device between his thumb and index finger. "You never did question if this could do more than track your location..."

All color drained from Marinette's face. "What did you do...?"

Chat Noir let go of the necklace and stepped away from Marinette, looking towards the window. He grabbeda silver baton from the base of his back that Alya hadn't seen before, allowing Alya the opportunity to notice his _real_ cat tail aswell. She couldn't wrap her head around how it was even possible.

Chat Noir pressed his thumb against a light green pawprint at the baton's center center and new voices filled the room.

Well, not entirely new. They were Alya and Marinette's voices.

 _"Marinette, you are not crazy_ _. You have been through more than some people have in their entire lives. You are strong and brave. Say it with me. I am strong and brave."_

 _"Strong and brave..."_

 _"I am confident and I will stand proud."_

 _"I am confident and I will stand proud."_

 _"And I will, get through this and be free again."_

 _"And I will get through this."_

Chat Noir pressed the pawprint once more and the room was silent. Then, he growled, whipping back to Marinette, baring pointed teeth. _Sharp._

"She's trying to take you away from me!" he yelled at Marinette, tail whipping, and pointing a clawed finger at Alya. Marinette opened her mouth several times to speak but nothing came out. Suddenly, Chat Noir's posture relaxed as he brought his hand to cup her cheek, something Alya still wanted to scream at. "But at least I know you're not lying when you say you love me."

Alya watched as he tapped the baton again.

 _"I love him."_ Marinettes' s voice rung from whatever speakers were in the baton.

Chat Noir pressed the pawprint again. And again, and again, and again. After what seemed like forever, Chat Noir set the baton on the desk, careful so as not to move any of the knives.

Alya saw Marinette shiver, leaning into Chat Noir. "I'm sorry, Kitty. I love you. I won't lie to you again. "

That was it. Alya had had enough of this bullshit. "You don't have to listen to this asshole, Marinette! You're your own person, you can say whatever the hell you want!" Alya yelled at her.

Marinette flinched, squeezing her eyes shut as if to block out the words.

"See, this is what I'm talking about, she's trying to take you away from me!" Chat Noir grabbed Marinette's wrist, pulling her flush against him. "I won't let her, I won't let you leave. You're mine. _Mine._ "

"No she isn't, you son of bitch! You can't just _own_ a _person_! That isn't love!"" Alya snarled at him.

Chat Noir's eyes flared as he grabbed his baton and took a step towards Alya, shoving Marinette behind him. He tapped the pawpring and the baton _extended._ With the elongated baton, her pressed it against her throat and tilted her chin up. "Watch your mouth."

"Why?" Alya growled. "Afraid she might see reason?"

Chat Noir brought his baton back to its original size and stepped closer, bringing a up to her face. Alya braced for the impact only for his fingers to wrap tightly around her neck. Not hard enough to choke, but a strong enough grip to spell _danger_.

"Ms. Cesaire," he said in a low voice. "I'm going to stop you before you do anything else to insult me. I would think a wannabe reporter would fact check before going straight to the accusations." Alya stiffened under his grip but his fingers only tightened. "Yes, Ms. Cesaire. I know you aspire to be a reporter just like I know you've been researching me. Just like I know that you haven't come up with anything useful to track me down. And don't even pretend not to remember the crash you heard outside your window the other night." Green eyes bore deep into hazel. "Of course it was me."

"I felt you leave the bed a two nights ago. Y-You said you were just going for a run..." Alya heard Marinette whisper.

Alya ignored her and glared at Chat Noir. "Let me guess, the Janitor was your fault, too."

Chat Noir let go, ushing her forward. But Alya was rewarded when he reached down to his pocket before dangling a key ring off his finger. He smirk at her. "Why aren't you just cunning."

"Kitty..." Marinette whimpered. "No..." She pressed herself against his back, clinging to Chat Noir's shoulder.

For once, Chat Noir didn't acknowledge Marinette. "With these keys, I've already locked every window and exit in the entire building. No one is getting in or out without my permission. Not with those reinforced windows your school got to keep me out..."

"How did you-?" Alya's jaw clenched. It was true. After the Rosalinda Massacre, all schools were required to set up extra security measures. François Dupont had added extremely strong glass windows over the summer to ensure the safety of the students. "Nevermind. I don't want to know."

"You really don't."

"Chat! Stop!" Marinette stepped in front of the villain, pressing her hands to his chest. "Please, you can't do this! Not again! Please, not again. I can't go through that again." Alya couldn't help but hear that Marinette's voice was starting to sound hysterical.

Chat Noir seemed to notice this, too. He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand gently, staring down at her with what Alya interpreted as what he thought was a smile of understanding. "Princess, I'm not going to kill them, I _did_ promise that."

Marinette huddered as she sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"But no one ever said I couldn't hurt them."

~~~

 **Okay, I really did mean for this to be the last part, but it turned out to be too long to put into one singular chapter, so chapter is being split in half so as to be able to fit in everything I want to. And, at the end of the final part to this chapter, there is going to be an epilogue, so sit tight. I'm hoping to get the final part of this out by the end of the week, so tell me what you think will happen by reviewing until then. And, even after that, I am going to post 1-2 chapters from Marinette's point of view so there is still a bit more to see from this fic. See you later this week, and happy new year, everyone! Miracle Out!**


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